By Sean Love | Project Leader
Hi everyone,
Following Black Friday and Cyber Monday, we had several donations on the newly minted Giving Tuesday, a day during which nonprofits and charities around the world encouraged consumers to give back. After receiving these generous gifts, we wanted to let you know how your money is being spent and to update you on the activities of the China California Heart Watch and our project to save 15 Chinese children living with heart disease.
Recently, Dr. Robert Detrano, the founder of the China California Heart Watch, and several volunteers have been touring impoverished villages around Xishuangbanna, Yunnan, a prefecture bordering Vietnam and Myanmar. This area is home to the Blang people, one of China's 56 officially-recognized ethnic minorities, many of whom have untreated heart disease.
In Xishuangbanna, Dr. Detrano and his team followed-up with several children who have already undergone surgery and some who still need it. Some of the children they saw include Ai Xiang Er (a photo of her family and our volunteers visiting with them is attached), who had surgery for Pulmonic Stenosis in 2010 at Chengdu Military Hospital. Xiang Er is back in school, doing very well, and is now able to keep up with her classmates on the playground. Ding De Peng (his pre-op photo is attached) had a successful surgery last week in Chengdu for a large ventricular septal defect and is at home now recovering and getting some rest. Yang Man Xing is a girl China Cal first saw in 2009, but we returned this week to follow-up with her. She has severe complex congenital heart disease, which our doctors believe can be cured with surgery. We are in the process of referring her case to Dr. An Qi at Chengdu West China Hospital. Her operation will be expensive, but with continued support, we will be able to fund it.
We want to thank you for your continued interest in China Cal and for your commitment to the children of Yunnan. Please be in touch with us if you have any questions or would like to become more involved. In the coming weeks, we'll be kicking off our recruitment drive for volunteers for our five internship programs planned for 2013. We'd love to have you participate!
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